WILLIAM H. FORNEY, Newcastle, Pennsylvania.
Ever conscientious at his work, an attempt to save a few minutes' time cost William H. Forney very dearly on one occasion. He was pulling a through freight with engine 154 on January 29, 1893, when, between Wheatland and Sharon, he had occasion to use sand on the slippery track; a loose sleeve on the sand pipe was causing the sand to fall inside the rail, and he called for brakes to stop the train in order to repair the sleeve. While the train was moving slowly he thought he could remedy the defect by kicking the pipe, and in order to save a few minutes' time he climbed down and attempted to do as he had thought. When he kicked the pipe he lost his balance on the slippery ground and his foot was caught by the wheels, crushing it so badly that he eventually lost the leg at the knee, and was laid up three months as a consequence.

Mr. Forney was born on a farm in Mahoning County, Ohio, November 2, 1857, and is the son of Joseph Forney, who, at the age of 73, resides with his wife at Canfield, Ohio. Mr. Forney's father ran a saw mill at Boardman, Ohio, and at the age of 13 the young man left school and went to work as fireman in the saw mill. After four years he took charge of the mill and ran it himself four years longer. In 1881 the family left Boardman and went to Canfield, Ohio, and at this place Mr. Forney went to work in a planing mill. He soon left this place and then worked at various jobs until November 7, 1881, when he secured a position as fireman on the Erie. He served in this capacity for six years, and in that time made for himself the record of being one of the best firemen on the Niles and New Lisbon Branch, his engine always being the cleanest and his general work of the highest order. January 1, 1887, he was promoted to engineer, and for the first nine months he assisted in the double tracking between Leetonia and Leavittsburg. He then ran freight out of Niles for a year and was transferred from that to running yard engine at Newcastle. Then he ran through freight for three years, this period of his service ending with his accident near Sharon. After his recovery he was given the yard engine at Newcastle at road pay, and has since held that place.

He was married August 7. 1887, to Miss Mary Sayers, the charming daughter of Frank Sayers, a retired capitalist of Niles, Ohio. They have two children, Joseph H., aged 11, and Frank S., aged 7, both of whom are bright young lads and are attending school. Mr. Forney is a member of Niles Lodge No. 138, K. of P.; Mahoning Lodge No. 394, F. & A. M., and Friendship Lodge No. 329, B. of L. E. He is a highly respected citizen of Newcastle, and takes great interest in the welfare of the city, being the owner of several valuable pieces of real estate, besides his own pleasant home.

Excerpted from: "American Locomotive Engineers, Erie Railway Edition," H.R. Romans Editor; Crawford-Adsit Company Publishers, Chicago, IL 1899.

From the February, 1915 issues of Erie Railroad Magazine:
W.H. Forney, listed as a Mahoning Division Engineer, running engine #102 with fireman H.O. Munnell, was enrolled in the Order of the Red Spot for January, 1915. The Order was an honor bestowed on engine crews who operated efficiently with few engine failures.

From the September, 1934 issues of Erie Railroad Magazine:
W.H. Forney, Mahoning Division engineer of Youngstown, was placed on the special allowance payroll recently and retired at age 76 after 48 years, 6 months of service.